Who has the cheapest-reliable DIY build?
 

Hey Guys,
I am new here. My friend just bought a 1997 Miata and we are thinking of going a DIY build for it. We are trying to work with a budget, below $2500. We are not looking for huge horsepower, and definitely would not expect from a low budget build.

Anyways, would like to see some of your builds. Who has the cheapest but yet reliable build? I'm sure someone has done a turbo set up for under $1,000 using savage parts from a turbo car. Post them up!

just over $500 in mine, 13g turbo, megaquirt, starion front mount and rx7 460s. already had a clutch and AEM wideband

It's gotta be Lazzer, he's the king of cheap.

Turbo, manifold, Dp and FMIC $500
1.8 injectors $50.00
IC Piping and couplers $160
Begi AFPR $ 90.00
Misc stuff about $200
Clutch $200
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I found that it wasn't the big parts that really hurt me, it was the constant tinkering, reworking, blowing a head gasket, Dremel parts, brass fittings, expiriments, junkyard parts, making little brackets, bolts, nuts, washers, rods, etc...

Begi Mani and DP: $800
SR20det T25: $150
Intake/IC/Piping/Couplers: $280
Megasquirt: $450
Injectors+Cleaning: $130
Spec Stg II: $310

But I bet you I've got an equal amount again more than that in failed parts, things I didn't use, extra pieces... etc.

$2,500? Hell, that's not low-budget!

BEGI-S, minus AFPR: ~$1,600 (a guess)
Intercooler system: DIY maybe $250
LC-1 wideband: $180 here
MS-I, R3: $187
Second MAP, GM IAT, modkits: ~$120
Boost gauge: $46
RX-7 injectors: ~$100

= $2,483. And with that you get the best manifold and ECU in the business.

edit: oh yeah, and a clutch.

Mine

Turbo: $140 (Subaru WRX TD04-13T)
T3 Manifold: $175 (BEGi, discontinued version)
Megasquirt V3: $187
LC-1: $200
BEGi Downpipe: $400
eBay Intercooler setup: $250
RX-7 Injectors: $17 (not a typo)
Cleaning of injectors: $60 or so
Adapter plate for turbo to manifold: $75
Misc parts (oil lines, etc): $200
eBay Clutch: $150

lol wow. Can anyone post links of there writeups? I'm coming from a BMW where turbo kits are close to 8k. I have a supercharged M roadster by the way and the price of the kit can definitely give you a nicely done, freakin fast miata!

Also, any of these DIY turbo kits dyno proven? What increase in WHP are you seeing?

Check Brain's FAQ at the top of this section.

When I am done ill have less then 2000 in my full kit, aiming for <1800 because toping the begi s is my goal.

The major components are:

Nissan T25
Begi mani+dp
MS I v3 + LC1
TurboXS Bov
RX7 460's w/cleaning
the rest is all random shit to tie it all together.

Right now im at $1651 and I think thats pretty damn decent when I look at my excel sheet that breaks down all the expenses by part.

The interesting thing I noticed, the major components are not really the biggest expenses in DIY builds its the other little shit that you need to make it work.

460cc injectors $100
AEM F/IC $400
Ebay FMIC $80
Exhaust, piping, couplers ~$175
BOV $30
Walbro 190 $85
Homemade manifold $70
Oil Lines $85
AEM UEGO $225
DSM 14b $85

That's around $1350. 10k miles so far, no problems, 14.0 @ 99mph with a semi-cruddy tune. Daily driven

New BEGI Manifold/DP/Oil Lines/Water Lines :760
New GT2860: 600
MSPNP: 700
I/C: 190
Piping: 100
Clutch: 300

begi-s: 1800
uego: 200
f/ic:300
fmic: 400
dyno:400

...i couldve just bought a begi s1 lol

Isn't that the truth.

I don't know how DIY my setup really is, since I used a lot of pre-built components, and it's not cheap by any stretch of the word, but I'm pleased with the result. I also purchased nearly everything new (except the turbo). My numbers include shipping and tax.

BEGi manifold + 3" stainless DP: $900
GT2554R: $300
IC/couplers/clamps/BOV: $300
Enthuza 3" stainless catback + 3" metal-core cat + flanges to mate it all: $600
Oil/water lines + fittings + heat sleeving: $170
MSPNP + KnocksenseMS + knock sensor mount + injectors: $850
Autometer boost/oil temp + Innovate LC-1/DB + 3-gauge pod: $540
ACT HD/6-puck + resurfaced OEM flywheel: $410
CSF 2" radiator: $310
oil cooler setup: $240

$4620 :vash:

Could I have done it cheaper? Yeah. Am I happy with the setup? Absolutely. Would I do anything differently? Aside from maybe start with a BEGi-S kit, no. For a street car, I could have shaved bucks in several areas; mild-steel exhaust vs. stainless, stock radiator, no oil cooler, softer clutch. I didn't feel comfortable skimping on any of those items because I track my car quite a bit, and the only problems I've ever had were high oil temps (pre-oil cooler) and loose/broken studs (8mm, replaced with 10mm after that happened).

Nice part about my setup is that once I gather the funds to build a shortblock and swap a 6-speed in, I can replace the GT2554R with a GT3071R and make 300+whp without changing a thing.

I think your statement is misleading. Dyno time would still cost you and so would the f/ic and uego.

Mike: I would say if you shop smart and buy used parts (when it makes sense) you can definitely have a reliable sub-$2000 turbo set up. If you want all new parts, then I'd budget for mid-$2000's (begi-s, ms, clutch, injectors, etc.)

I'm still not done yet, but I'm not doing too bad... The expensive parts are the collateral tools purchased so I can complete this and other projects..

T3 Turbocharger -- Free
T4 Compressor -- $100
Megasquirt -- $300
LC1 -- $180
DIY Manifold -- $110
Intercooler / Plumbing -- $203
Clutch -- $410
Turbonetics DeltaGate MKII -- $100
Hobart IronMan 210 -- $1098
Horizontal Bandsaw -- $190

Still missing KnocksenseMS, larger injectors which I'm going to wait on, and exhaust piping to build my downpipe. Downpipe should cost me around $90.00 if I figured correctly.

We'll see...

I notice the begi mani and DP, why? Is this the cheap DP, that one looks very bad to me? What about the Manifold, what makes this one the choice of so many?


Thanks!!

OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!! I'm so excited I can barely type. How hard should I be on this guy? Should I help him out or put the biggest hurt on him this board has ever seen? Please, please, please.... I haven't put the screws to a NOOB in 2 weeks....

homemade manifold $60
homemade downpipe + 2.5" exhaust $100
460's $125
F/IC $400
FMIC $80
piping $80
BOV $25
14b $80

got 17-20k miles on the setup. Not so much as a blown off coupler.